by Microbusiness Owners

Priorities

One of the best things about owning a microbusiness is the ability to adjust your priorities to your current situation. Some priorities are locked in our top spot, but sometimes you will need to be more flexible. When you have a newborn baby to take care of, you need to be able to have a flexible schedule. Many jobs allow employees to take time off for such life events.

Owning a business also gives you this kind of flexibility – especially if you own a successful business that provides you with a residual income. Even if you do not own a business that provides you with a residual income, you still have so much control over your schedule. You will be able to change appointment times and work different hours. This year I got married and bought a house. The flexibility of owning a microbusiness helped make these exciting life events a success!

By Anthony Hilb

09.26.13

by Microbusiness Owners

Take it Easy

By Anthony Hilb

I noticed I was stressed when putting in long work days, so I decided to research relaxation techniques. I considered myself a Type-A kind of person when it came to work, and I noticed I wasn’t completely happy with the results. Feeling drained the majority of the time isn’t the goal of owning a business for me.

The Type-Z Guide to Success by Marc Allen has been a tremendous resource. Here are a couple of passages from the book I’ve enjoyed:

“I started to see – and then to believe – that not only was it possible to create success in an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way, but that it’s the very best way to do it. All our stress doesn’t help us one bit; in fact it works against us. The more we relax, the more effectively we do any kind of task.” -Marc Allen

In and easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way....

In an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way….

“Many people in our culture don’t believe that it’s even possible to succeed and still have a life of ease. Or they believe they need to work really hard, maybe even be Type-A workaholics, before they can succeed – and then they can relax and have a life of ease.

Many people even equate success with stress: There’s a deep core belief that success has to be stressful, that’s just the way it is, you have to be a Type-A to succeed. I absolutely disagree with this belief (and I’m not the only one!). There are many people who believe exactly the opposite: The more relaxed you are, the more at ease, the more you can and will succeed.

You make better decisions when you’ve considered everything in a relaxed state. (Everyone knows the value of “sleeping on” something – what can be perplexing in the afternoon is so often simple and clear the next morning.) The decisions we make in stressful states so often lead to more stress; it’s the plans we make and ideas we have when we’re relaxed that can take our success to a much higher level.” -Marc Allen

08.29.13

by Microbusiness Owners

Get Set Tech With Micro Business

By Arjun P.

In today’s world technology has only enhanced the businesses of both major and minor corporations all over the globe. Thanks to information technology the world has become a global market for micro businesses to find their footing without having to fear about the loss of investment. Technological advancement has given these businesses easy access by the general mass with the development of phone applications. Smart-phones are enabled with the necessary software application which allows micro businesses to communicate and correspond with the buyer directly. Social networking sites have become a utility tool for not only promoting business but also an excellent way to review and get access to commodities.

Like every drop of water contributes to the formation of an ocean, in the same way micro businesses are contributing to the growth of the global economy. With a few hundred and more upcoming and future micro enterprises being set up by the hour, there are more than a million people working towards a better economic development globally. With the increase and rapid growth in information technology there is a direct exponential growth in micro businesses.

Technology has become the backbone of micro businesses and is integral to the success of the global economic system, hence giving micro businesses the right leverage to ensure independence and self-sufficiency. With search stations flooding the world wide net, micro businesses can now launch and make them available to every nook and cranny of every country throughout. Websites, advertisements in web-pages, blogging, are just a few ways technology has aided micro businesses in making themselves accessible to people around the world.

06.04.13

by Microbusiness Owners

The Fallacy of Starting a “Real Business”

By Anthony Hilb

Be extremely careful with the advice people share with you…this blog included! What has worked for others may not work for you. Our economy isn’t what it once was, and technology is drastically changing just about every industry. Many traditional rules no longer apply. People have told me to grow my businesses, to start a “real business” and to get a “real job.” Yet I’ve been profitable since day one, and I make more than the average person my age. What’s so unreal about that? These are the same people that want me to take on debt and hire employees I don’t need. And that’s probably why 90% of businesses fail. People new to the business world frequently listen to their elders and take antiquated routes. This isn’t always the case, but it has been often enough from my experience. Every adviser at my local SBDC has not been helpful. I would have never even started the profitable businesses I enjoy had I listened to many of my risk averse elders.

Who has helped me with their advice? Incredible people who blog about business and authors who write about business. People like Seth Godin, Jason Fried, Jay Levinson, Gary Vaynerchuk, Tony Robbins, Richard Branson, Chris Anderson, Chris Guillebeau, Timothy Ferris, and many others have all been very helpful. They actually have experience and know what they’re talking about.

Take a route that works best for you. Pursue your business at a pace that works best for you. Some people are in a situation to start a traditional business with millions of dollars and employees, while other people prefer starting extremely small without debt. Determine a path that works best for you and get started! You may need to start your business part-time, or you may be able to start full-time. It’s all situational.

To traditionalists and many people older than myself, it may not appear like I own a “real” business. I don’t have 50 employees, and I don’t own a big office. I don’t buy everything I need for my businesses up front; I rent equipment and buy it used if I know I’ll need it regularly. Even if I do grow more and hire 20 people, those employees won’t have to come in to an office. As long as they get their work done, they can work from their home or from their own small office.

I started my first business two years ago, and now I pursue three microbusinesses each week. One of my microbusinesses gets the majority of my attention while the other two only need a few hours spent on them each week at this point. It only took a couple hundred bucks to start all of my businesses, and I hardly spend anything on marketing. I have no business debt, and I’ve always been profitable. All because I follow my instincts and grow at a pace that’s right for me.

04.15.13

by Microbusiness Owners

Improvise!

By Anthony Hilb

You gotta be flexible. Sometimes you MUST improvise. I’m improvising this entire blog post; I have no idea what I’ll say next at this moment, and I haven’t decided how I’ll end it. I’m only giving myself 10 minutes to finish this post. But so what! The importance of improvisation can’t be overlooked, and this is giving me a bit of practice.

Sometimes incredible opportunities unexpectedly present themselves to us. Often times these moments are when we’ll have to improvise. In conversations sometimes we just gotta improvise and go with it.

Not everything can be planned, and we have a restricted amount of time to work during the day. However, so much can be planned. To eliminate too much improvisation during your work week, set your priorities. Be ruthless about setting your priorities. This will help you predetermine what actions you will take in many circumstances.

When an amazing opportunity comes your way, you’ll be able to make an educated decision about your course of action. You might need to drop a current project or client in order to pursue a much better project/client. But you will still need to improvise and learn as you go no matter what you decide. There’s no doubt about that. Planning your every move won’t always work.

My 10 minutes is up. I hope you enjoyed my improvised rant. Get out there and take action! Set your priorities and improvise when you’re stuck!

04.10.13

by Microbusiness Owners

Motivation Station!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XHcPYorSJw

By Anthony Hilb

We don’t listen to Mötley Crüe too much, but that’s not the point! Musicians are creative, and creativity invents new paths. When you’re looking for inspiration for your business or personal life, listen to music that inspires you and pumps you up! That music may even be relaxing music. Whatever it is, be sure to listen to it at some point during the day. Unless you hate all music, this habit will help your business, microbusiness, and personal life!